Federal Budget 2016: $29B Deficit

[heep223]

Ottawa's answer to the energy collapse and subsequent historic depression in AB and SK: extend EI benefits and cross fingers. Lol!

The plunge in oil prices and reduced demand for Canadian commodities as a result of the global economic slowdown has left tens of thousands of workers without jobs. To help these displaced workers, Ottawa is extending employment insurance benefits in Alberta, Saskatchewan, northern Ontario and Newfoundland and Labrador.

Trudeau’s first budget aims to spur growth with $29-billion deficit

Finance Minister Bill Morneau is promising his first budget will generate 100,000 jobs and stimulate economic growth with billions in new spending on infrastructure and targeted help for families, students, low-income seniors, the unemployed and indigenous people.
Stimulus spending on infrastructure and family support is projected to boost the country’s economic growth by 1 per cent, but it comes at a cost to the bottom line and a broken campaign pledge to balance the books before the next election.

The deficit will hit $29.4-billion in 2016-17 and the Liberals are no longer promising to balance the books by the end of their first mandate – instead suggesting it could take at least five years.

The projected deficit for 2019-20, when Canadians return to the polls, is now $17.7-billion, though the government says that could be smaller if the economy and oil prices rebound.

The five-year budget plan adds more than $100-billion to the federal debt, but when measured as a percentage of the economy, the size of the debt is projected to decline slightly.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/...click=sf_globe

[chemgear]

$10 to $30 billion in the blink of an eye.

[Enoch Root]

Justin looks more like his dad every day

[puckedoff]

'A budget designed in a 1970's mentality to solve the problems of the 1980's " is how one talking head on the CBC put it. Hyuk.

[mrkajz44]

Apparently their revenue projections are very modest, and some are thinking the Liberals are hoping to exceed expectations by the time the next election rolls around.

Essentially, they have power for 4 years, so throw up huge deficit numbers with conservative revenue estimates. Then, things get better over 4 years, people forget about the $10M number from the prior election, and the Liberals pat themselves on the back for exceeding expectations, telling us to vote for them again.

[TheAlpineOracle]

Some of these credit cuts are brutal (though expected). Essentially if you are a middle class worker with a family you are losing all your credits while the bottom feeders of society that contribute nothing are getting getting enhanced programs and easier access. I don't like where this country is headed at all. Canada has always had a socialist flare, but my god, now we are forcing the middle class to give up the small tax perks they have.

[FLAMESRULE]

Originally Posted by TheAlpineOracle

Some of these credit cuts are brutal (though expected). Essentially if you are a middle class worker with a family you are losing all your credits while the bottom feeders of society that contribute nothing are getting getting enhanced programs and easier access. I don't like where this country is headed at all. Canada has always had a socialist flare, but my god, now we are forcing the middle class to give up the small tax perks they have.

Yeah F the people at the bottom barely able to feed themselves...time to get my pitchfork out cause I lost my $500 credit so little Johnny can run his fat ass around a park...

Good lord man.

[heep223]

Also keep in mind that $30B deficit is just for this year. Next year they're projecting a similar deficit, and then they say they're going to slowly decrease it over the next few years (I'll believe that when I see it). Basically $100B all funded with debt. Already so much debt at the consumer level, so much already at the govt level, now just piling on more....sure it could bump GDP by what 0.4% the next few years, but then we're stuck again. It's a vicious cycle.

Say what you will about the conservatives but they battled hard to balance the budget. All goes poof.

Lots of language also around the "low carbon economy". I'm seriously worried about the future of Alberta.

[Enoch Root]

Originally Posted by heep223

Also keep in mind that $30B deficit is just for this year. Next year they're projecting a similar deficit, and then they say they're going to slowly decrease it over the next few years (I'll believe that when I see it). Basically $100B all funded with debt. Already so much debt at the consumer level, so much already at the govt level, now just piling on more....sure it could bump GDP by what 0.4% the next few years, but then we're stuck again. It's a vicious cycle.

Say what you will about the conservatives but they battled hard to balance the budget. All goes poof.

Lots of language also around the "low carbon economy". I'm seriously worried about the future of Alberta.

let future generations pay!

(and yes, that was daddy's motto too)

[calgarygeologist]

Sounds like there is some positives for unemployed folks in Alberta that are receiving EI benefits. If I have the facts correct, the maximum number of weeks for regular benefits available in Alberta will be going up by 5 weeks and long tenured workers will be able to apply for EI benefit extensions for an additional 20 weeks of benefits (should work out to a potential of 70 weeks of EI benefits.)

[Red]

Originally Posted by heep223

Also keep in mind that $30B deficit is just for this year. Next year they're projecting a similar deficit, and then they say they're going to slowly decrease it over the next few years (I'll believe that when I see it). Basically $100B all funded with debt. Already so much debt at the consumer level, so much already at the govt level, now just piling on more....sure it could bump GDP by what 0.4% the next few years, but then we're stuck again. It's a vicious cycle.

Say what you will about the conservatives but they battled hard to balance the budget. All goes poof.

Lots of language also around the "low carbon economy". I'm seriously worried about the future of Alberta.

Not trying to dispute that, but isn't that a myth according to some people that dig deep?
Didn't they sell GM at a loss just to show that surplus last time? Historically, aren't the cons actually borrowing more than the liberals?

I've read many claims about all that, any truth to that?

[Knut]

For our household personally.. We lose the universal child care benefit and the child fitness tax benefit. But we gain a bit back on income tax and small business tax though.

[EldrickOnIce]

Interested in specifics of how this budget will drive growth in the AB economy. Not just generalizations I could get from a 2nd year econ student

[heep223]

Originally Posted by Red

Not trying to dispute that, but isn't that a myth according to some people that dig deep?
Didn't they sell GM at a loss just to show that surplus last time? Historically, aren't the cons actually borrowing more than the liberals?

I've read many claims about all that, any truth to that?

Depends on the context.

The Conservatives under Harper did run deficits in response to the 08/09 financial crisis, and that might be what you're referring to. They successfully navigated us through that depression and emerged on the other side with the Canadian banking system and economy being used around the world as an example of best practice.

Since then, they made balancing the budget a priority and had just achieved that goal when Trudeau was voted in. That's what I was referring to, the time period 2008-2015. You are also correct though because they executed a whole bunch of stimulative measures during collapse in '08 and ran deficits.

Before that, I'm not as familiar. I think after Trudeau's dad riddled the country with debt (back in the NEP days), the Liberals under Chretien did a pretty good job of getting things back to a balanced ledger.

[albertGQ]

At least there's no carbon tax right? I didn't read it anywhere in the budget.

[Slava]

Originally Posted by heep223

Depends on the context.

The Conservatives under Harper did run deficits in response to the 08/09 financial crisis, and that might be what you're referring to. They successfully navigated us through that depression and emerged on the other side with the Canadian banking system and economy being used around the world as an example of best practice.

Since then, they made balancing the budget a priority and had just achieved that goal when Trudeau was voted in. That's what I was referring to, the time period 2008-2015. You are also correct though because they executed a whole bunch of stimulative measures during collapse in '08 and ran deficits.

Before that, I'm not as familiar. I think after Trudeau's dad riddled the country with debt (back in the NEP days), the Liberals under Chretien did a pretty good job of getting things back to a balanced ledger.

Well I'm sure that someone else will take up the cause, but crediting the past CPC government with being fiscal conservatives is just revisionist history. Half of the things you're giving them credit for here aren't even their doing, or at best they had to be forced to do or face the consequences of a coalition government.

[TheAlpineOracle]

Originally Posted by FLAMESRULE

Yeah F the people at the bottom barely able to feed themselves...time to get my pitchfork out cause I lost my $500 credit so little Johnny can run his fat ass around a park...

Good lord man.

Why should someone get more tax credits than me or have their kid get to go to university for the half the cost of mine because I chose to go to get a trade or a skill? We aren't talking about millionaires here. We are talking about everyday blue collar people that have lost a bunch of tax credits who will not be eligible for any of the the enhanced programs the government will be creating to supplement the loss of those programs. Look at some of the thresholds. Most families in Alberta will not be eligible for any of these programs.

[OMG!WTF!]

I don't want to alarm anybody but I don't think this was the budget liberals promised during their election campaign. I thought for sure budgets balanced themselves.

[FlamesAddiction]

Good, we need it.

[Jacks]

Well we all know that the Cons are horrible debt mongers, we need the Liberals to come in and clean up the mess and get us back to surpluses. That was the narritave a year ago right?
Then the narrative became that we need to run small deficits.
Now the narritive is that we need to run huge deficits.

The truth is that Liberals are not good at balancing budgets. The only exception (in modern times) is a period of the Chretien/Martin years when they were threatened with economic downgrades and responded by slashing provicial transfers that primarily went to health and education. Credit to them that they brought the budget under control but lets not forget that they did it by breaking all of their major campaign promises, keeping Mulroney's policies in place and governing like fiscal Conservatives.

Trudeau Sr was a complete disaster and it looks like Jr is following in his footsteps.

Originally Posted by Red

Not trying to dispute that, but isn't that a myth according to some people that dig deep?
Didn't they sell GM at a loss just to show that surplus last time? Historically, aren't the cons actually borrowing more than the liberals?

No, the GM shares were part of this fiscal year.